The following is a key to the leafhopper and sharpshooters
(Cicadellidae) captured in and around grape vineyards in north and central Texas. During
the growing season of 1997, a total of 47 different species were captured. It is very
likely that other species were present but were not captured and therefore are not
represented in this key.

Criteria used in this key are size, color, and shape.
Although all leafhoppers and sharpshooters described here are adults, size, color, and
shape can vary slightly. For example, leafhopper Exitianus
exitiosus has been described as up to 5 mm, in fact, this leafhopper
has been found to range in size from just over 4 mm to about 5.5 mm. The sharpshooter Xyphon flaviceps is known to lose its greenish color during
the winter in favor a grayish-brown color. In some species sex determines the shape and
size. The female of Spangbergiella vulnerata is
approximately 8 mm in length and its head is rounded at the apex and the anterior margin
is flattened. The male is approximately 6 mm in length and its head is more pointed at the
apex and the anterior margin is rounded.

To use this key it will be necessary to understand some of
the terminology and to know a few basic structures of the leafhoppers. To make this
easier, drawings from the 1949 publication The Neartic Leafhoppers, A Generic
Classification and Check List by P. W. Oman, have been used. These drawings include
the head, pronotum, and scutellum (Fig. 1) of leafhoppers. The shape of these structures,
and the markings on them are the distinguishing characteristics of each species.

Figure 1 shows the dorsal (upper side) view of the head,
pronotum, and scutellum. Again, the color, shape, and size of these three structures are
used extensively through-out this key to differentiate between species. Another term used
to describe the leafhoppers is

anterior margin flattened or rounded (Fig. 2).
Anterior refers to the outer front margin of the head. Anterior margin flattened means
that the margin, separating the top and bottom of the head, is flat (Fig. 2, a), as
opposed to rounded (Fig. 2, b).